The flame has been extinguished. The medals have all been awarded, for the most part (apparently gymnastics is getting a bit gymnasty about the bronze medal). The games of the XXXIII Olympiad have concluded. We may all return to our regularly scheduled routines. We no longer need to sneak a peek at our phones to see how our favorite American athletes are faring. Or, perhaps you wanted to watch...
Who is the GOAT? GOAT is a modern acronym for the coveted title of Greatest Of All Time. It is applied rather generously in a wide variety of settings and is argued vehemently in others. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in the world of professional basketball. This has been particularly true with the recent accomplishments of Lebron James and the imminence of his retirement. This has led to...
It is an unavoidable fact of life. We will all, at various times and ways, be mistreated and misused by others. As a pastor, a good portion of my week is spent trying to help people navigate the hurt and heartache in their lives resulting from these realities. There is a shocking shortage of civility, compassion, and grace in our communities and our culture at large these days. Division and...
I saw a very intriguing image while taking my evening scroll through the internet last night. The image was an old, grainy, sepia-colored photograph. In the foreground, there are four greyhound dogs coming out of the starting gates for a race. In the background, still laying down in its gate, looking exceptionally disinterested in the race unfolding before it, is a cheetah. A quick Google search...
We have a lot of what I would call filler words and phrases in the English language. These are words and phrases we use for a variety of reasons in conversation. Often times, we use them because we really aren’t sure what we want to say so we fill the conversational space with these placeholders in order to buy ourselves time to figure out what we actually want to say. At other times, we use them...
Have you ever had an experience where you found yourself asking, “How in the world did I get here? Why me?” I don’t think it’s too far of a stretch to assume that most of us, in one way or another, have had such experiences. I find such experiences are a common fixture when in the proverbial valleys as well as on the mountaintops. Failure and success have a way of stirring a sense of awareness...
In the two weeks since our daughter headed to college, we have communicated with her daily through both text and FaceTime. It is the first time in YEARS that I’ve been thankful for cellular devices. Thus far, our girl has been diligent and disciplined in her approach to her classes and her coursework (Big thanks to Mr. Perry and many other SHS teachers who made it a point to push students in...
Would you rather be the star player on a bad team or an unknown contributor on a championship team? This is a question that was posed to me in my younger years, and one that continues to creep back into my head from time to time. Given that we are in the middle of the Olympic games, it makes sense that the question would come to mind, once again. As armchair athletes, it’s easy to say we’d be...
Movies tend to be somewhat therapeutic for me. They provide my overactive, hyper-analytical mind with something outside of my everyday, real-life struggles to focus my attention and energy on. I often find myself looking for myself in the movie. I try to figure out who best represents the point of view I would hold were I to find myself in the same situations, with the same options, and with the...
Aaron Bartsch is the recently minted Director of Facilities and Maintenance at First Baptist Church, or as we like to call him around the office, the Minister of Maintenance. He has also served on our Deacon Board and plays bass guitar for our worship team. Most people at First Baptist are aware of these facts, but what you may not know is that Aaron is an actual, real-life Samurai. I’ve seen his...
Jeremy Myers is the Lead Pastor of First Baptist Church of Seymour, Indiana, where he has served since 2017. He has over 25 years of experience in local church ministry and not-for-profit leadership. He has a passion for helping emerging and existing generations learn to make space for each other and caring for the under-served and marginalized. In 2016, he earned his Doctor of Ministry degree from Palmer Theological Seminary, with his thesis focusing on developing connections between senior adults and youth in the church. He is a passionate and gifted communicator and is regularly invited to speak at retreats, camps, conferences, and other events. He lives in Seymour, Indiana with his wife Robyn, their two children, Mikayla and JJ, and their Golden Doodle, Evie.
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